During the hottest days, the most vulnerable groups are the elderly and children. Seasonal health challenges include sunstroke, heatstroke, burns, excessive sweating, and heart attacks. What should you know about lifestyle adjustments in the era of global warming?
Burns and Overheating
Sunstroke results from prolonged exposure to direct sunlight, while heatstroke is most likely when high temperatures, humidity, and physical exertion combine. When thermoregulation fails in both cases, the body can react with painful symptoms: elevated temperature, acute kidney and liver failure, central nervous system disorders, and vascular tone disturbances. Both conditions are serious and can lead to cardiac arrest without timely intervention.
Signs of Sunstroke and Heatstroke:
- redness of the skin;
- excessive sweating;
- headache and dizziness;
- nausea and vomiting;
- rapid and irregular pulse;
- body temperature rising to 39-40 degrees Celsius;
- pain in the back and chest;
- convulsions;
- hallucinations.
Severe Symptoms:
- hot skin;
- pallor and cyanosis of the skin;
- sudden decrease in sweating and urination;
- lowered blood pressure;
- dilated pupils;
- rapid and shallow breathing;
- loss of consciousness (coma).
Self-Help for Heatstroke:
- eat watermelon, pineapple, cucumber, or orange;
- rub your palms and soles with onion juice or at least smell a cut onion;
- apply a compress of grated horseradish or turpentine to your palms and soles for 20 minutes;
- avoid physical exertion, alcohol, tobacco, aspirin, and acetaminophen (heatstroke cannot be treated with non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs).
Home Remedies for Sunburn:
- rub the reddened skin with a cut cucumber, vodka, and whipped raw egg (using alcohol-based topical agents is not recommended if the skin has blistered);
- apply sour cream to the burned areas;
- you can apply warm elderberry leaves boiled in milk to the burn site (change every two hours);
- moisten a towel with strong freshly brewed tea and use it as a compress;
- in compresses, you can use a baking soda solution, a mixture of oatmeal jelly with potato starch (20 g of starch per 100 ml of jelly), onion, carrot, or potato puree, as well as flaxseed, fir, or sea buckthorn oil;
- for a refreshing mask against burns, blend 2 teaspoons of aloe pulp, half a banana, and 6 grapes with any oil (1 tablespoon) and apply the mixture to the affected areas for 20 minutes, then gently rinse off or wipe with a damp cloth;
- a homemade emulsion from dried dandelion roots and vegetable oil (1:10 ratio) can help with sunburn: the mixture should be infused in a closed enamel container for a day and stored in glass, but after infusion, it should be placed in a water bath for an hour and then strained;
- a homemade ointment made from beeswax and vegetable oil (1:3 ratio) is effective for burns: heat the components, mix them, cool, and apply to the affected skin three times a day;
- rubbing the burned areas with fresh ginger juice or a tincture of white mushrooms (the caps should be placed in a jar and covered with vodka, left in a dark place for three weeks, and then strained) can also help.
Preventive Measures Against Overheating:
- avoid being outdoors in direct sunlight and in stuffy rooms during the day;
- wear a hat and breathable clothing made from natural fabrics in the summer;
- avoid coffee and strong drinks in hot weather;
- maintain hydration and quench your thirst with still water.
Doctors particularly urge caution in the heat for individuals with cardiovascular diseases and those diagnosed with glaucoma (increased intraocular pressure can lead to sudden and irreversible blindness).
Medications in the Heat
The ability to tolerate heat can be affected by medication.
Effects of Medications:
- sedatives and pain relievers reduce sensitivity to heat discomfort and increase tolerance to high temperatures;
- non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and sulfonamides inhibit kidney function;
- beta-blockers and antianginal medications decrease heart contractility;
- dehydration from diuretics disrupts heart rhythm and complicates blood flow in the kidneys and liver, hindering the elimination of medications and toxins;
- laxatives (lactulose), medications that induce vomiting and diarrhea (colchicine), and fluid retention antagonists (morphine) cause electrolyte imbalances;
- thyroxine and sympathomimetics stimulate sweating;
- antidepressants reduce sweating and decrease physical activity.
Thus, the highest risk comes from neuroleptics, diuretics, and anticholinergic medications.
The “Dacha Heart Attack”
Summer gardening and yard work pose serious risks. The “dacha heart attack” is a sneaky condition due to its hidden symptoms.
What Should Raise Alarm?
Be alert if you suddenly experience shortness of breath, abdominal pain, nausea, or vomiting: this could signal the onset of a heart attack. In older adults, it may manifest as dizziness and loss of consciousness. Sometimes, pre-heart attack pain is localized in the right side of the chest, causing heartburn and a “lump in the throat.” The onset of a heart attack is often mistaken for cervical radiculitis, neuralgia, or muscle strain. Occasionally, there may just be pain in a finger or the lower jaw. In such cases, even experienced doctors can misdiagnose.
If you or a close relative has a history of angina, has had a myocardial infarction, or suffered a stroke, physical activity should be moderated. Work hard, then rest. If you have had heart issues before, get an electrocardiogram before heading to the dacha and keep a blood pressure monitor handy. Before starting work in the garden, check your blood pressure and count your pulse for five minutes. If your systolic pressure is no higher than 140 and your diastolic is no lower than 90, there is no risk of a heart attack. The normal resting pulse rate is between 60 and 90 beats per minute.
What Are the Dangers of Gardening?
Cholesterol is present in our blood. It is necessary for the body, but only in the right amounts. When there is too much, white fatty plaques form and deposit on the walls of blood vessels. This narrows the blood flow, and the vessels lose elasticity. Blood pressure rises, increasing the risk of stroke. The same atherosclerotic plaques also accumulate on the walls of the vessels that supply the heart. Gradually growing, they can completely block these vessels. Eventually, the blood supply to a part of the heart muscle is cut off, leading to its death. This is what a heart attack is. During gardening, intense physical exertion increases blood flow, pushing it toward the heart, but cholesterol plaques can obstruct this flow. The heart, in turn, beats harder during physical activity: the “motor” needs fuel, but it isn’t getting it. Mechanical strain can cause plaques to rupture and completely block the vessel lumen.
Don’t Take Risks!
At the slightest suspicion of heart pain, stop any work and try to relieve the pain with medication. If the pain persists, take a second dose and urgently call for an ambulance.
Severe weakness, sweating, headache, dizziness, and acute disturbances in vision, speech, and coordination are contraindications for taking nitroglycerin. You can learn when to take this medication and when to avoid it, as well as the proper actions to take during a heart attack and myocardial infarction, here.
Remember that nitroglycerin degrades quickly in light, especially in sunlight. Store it in a dark, cool place, and try to open the packaging in the shade. Once opened, the medication lasts no more than two weeks, as it loses its therapeutic properties when exposed to air.
Is Sweating Harmful?
During menopause and with certain illnesses, heat and humidity can trigger excessive sweating. This can be localized or generalized. Causes of generalized excessive sweating include fever, hormonal imbalances, neurasthenia, tuberculosis, diabetes, and more. Localized sweating usually concentrates on the soles, palms, armpits, genital area, and scalp. People who suffer from localized excessive sweating often have persistently moist hands and feet in the summer, unpleasant-smelling armpits, and develop rashes on their skin.
Home Remedies for Sweating
How can you address this issue using your home pharmacy?
- Pour 5 tablespoons of crushed walnut leaves with a liter of boiling water, let it steep for an hour, then simmer on low heat until boiling. Strain the cooled broth and use it for foot baths.
- Pour 5 tablespoons of a mixture of ground oak bark and yellow gentian root (3:1 ratio) with a liter of boiling water and keep it in a water bath for half an hour. Strain after cooling and use it for foot baths as well.
- Dissolve 1 teaspoon of salt in a glass of hot water and rinse your sweaty hands with the saline solution twice a day.
- After washing your feet with cold water, dry them thoroughly and place birch leaves between your toes. Walk like this, changing the leaves twice a day.
- Dust areas of excessive sweating with a mixture of talc and starch (9:1) or a powder made from salicylic acid (1 part), starch (9 parts), and talc (27 parts).
- Prepare a herbal mixture of sage leaves, blueberry leaves, clover grass, and marshmallow (2:2:1:1). Pour 1 tablespoon of the mixture with a cup of boiling water, strain after steeping, and take half a cup three times a day before meals.
- Grind oak bark into powder, sift it through a sieve, and put it in your socks. Change the powder in your socks daily.
- Steep 1 tablespoon of sage herb in 200 ml of boiling water and strain after 20 minutes. Drink 1/3 cup three times a day after meals.
- You can sprinkle potato starch on sweaty feet.
- For excessive night sweating, wipe your body with apple cider vinegar at night.
This hygiene issue bothers everyone who faces it. So, the claim that “sweating is not harmful” can be debated.
Maintaining Hydration
How much water to drink in the heat is an individual question. The need for fluids depends on health status, diet, and physical activity. Doctors recommend drinking 1.5-2 liters of plain water in the summer. However, if a person is used to consuming less, it’s not advisable to change the volume of fluid without the body’s signals. Nonetheless, experts suggest increasing water intake by 20-30% in the summer, as sweating increases. The body sweats to cool down: it’s a defense mechanism against overheating.
However, lost fluids need to be replenished because sweating also depletes electrolytes—important salts and trace elements. Maintaining a proper water-electrolyte balance through drinking and diet is crucial for well-being, athletic performance, and work productivity. Athletes, people under stress, those engaged in physical and mental labor, and alcohol consumers need to drink more water: physical and mental stress, as well as harmful habits, increase blood viscosity and provoke vascular crises.
Replenishing the body’s water supply should be done evenly throughout the day. It’s best to do this in moderate, regular portions rather than large amounts at once. Start your day in the heat not with coffee, but with a glass of plain water. Coffee and alcohol in the summer are particularly harmful. These drinks increase the load on the blood vessels, intensify thirst, and contribute to dehydration by flushing out beneficial salts. To achieve a proper water-electrolyte balance in such cases, you’ll need to drink more water.
It is believed that for the thermoregulation system to function smoothly, the body should excrete 1.5-2 liters of urine per day. If less than a liter is produced, it is a cause for concern. At the same time, excess water in older adults can increase sweating, further straining the cardiovascular system.
Nutrition in the Heat
What should you eat and what should you avoid when temperatures rise to 30°C and above? Nutritionists have suggested a diet to cool the body.
In the Morning – Berries and Protein
Protein is essential in all seasons, as it serves as the building block for cells. In summer, it’s best to consume protein at breakfast. A sample menu could include a boiled egg or 100 grams of 5% fat cheese. It’s better to mix the protein product with herbs and hot pepper.
Carbohydrates are also beneficial: they provide energy. A morning portion could be a slice of bran bread or a bowl of oatmeal (other grain options for porridge include buckwheat or a grain mix).
For hydration, unsweetened tea with lemon and mint is recommended. If you can’t do without coffee, drink it with milk and ice.
The best summer dessert consists of seasonal berries and fruits. You can make fruit and berry jelly with honey, fresh fruit juice, or smoothies (blend fruits with milk or yogurt).
At Noon – Okroshka and Mozzarella
For lunch, you can have a cold soup made with broth, kvass, or kefir, boiled chicken with stewed vegetables and herbs. Options include low-fat cheese like Adyghe or mozzarella, fish in foil, and a vegetable salad with herbs and olive oil (the daily portion of vegetable oil should not exceed 2 tablespoons).
In the Evening – Seafood and Kefir
For lunch and early dinner, you can serve white fish or white meat with vegetables. However, it’s best not to overindulge in protein, as such foods increase blood viscosity: the body uses water to process heavy protein. A vegetarian menu with baked seafood and salads is a great way to beat the heat.
Fruits, vegetables, kefir, and yogurt are the best for cooling down and restoring the water-electrolyte balance. Hot foods (drinks and soups) increase sweating, thus preventing overheating. In contrast, digesting heavy foods depletes the body of water, while fruits and vegetables replenish those reserves. If there isn’t enough water to eliminate toxins, it can lead to exacerbation of chronic diseases. This is not part of our plans, as summer is meant for rejuvenation.